Blackmagic Micro Studio Cam Goes Under the Sea

FREMONT, CALIF.—Blackmagic Design has taken a dive into the water as its Micro Studio Camera 4K is being used as part of an underwater stereoscopic 360 system from VRTUL Live. VRTUL utilized a number of other Blackmagic products for the system, including the Video Assist 4K monitor/recorder, Teranex AV standards processor, Arduino Shield, HyperDeck Studio 12G broadcast deck and Smart Videohub 40x40 router.

The VRTUL system was used recently for a “Good Morning America” broadcast, capturing a 360-degree underwater live stream. The footage captured was used for a three-hour stream of an underwater shipwreck in the Bahamas during a shark dive.

The Live rig featured five Micro Studio Camera 4Ks to capture the underwater 360 footage, with the SDI signal from each camera converted to fiber using Blackmagic Mini Converters Optical Fiber 4K, as well as Mini Converters SDI Distribution. Arduino Shields were used on the boat to adjust camera gain, shutter and other manual controls. Also on the boat was the Smart Videohub, receiving live color grading from DaVinci Resolve Studio and stitching from on-set engineers. The Teranex AV was used for audio embedding and signal processing, while the HyperDeck Studio 12G recorded the master.

The VRTUL system was created with the help of 30Ninjas and Lewis Smithingham.

Blackmagic Design today announced that its Micro Studio Camera 4Ks are part of the new VRTUL Live pro underwater stereoscopic 360 system, which ABC’s “Good Morning America” recently used for a 360-degree underwater live stream.

Where do you go when you need a small broadcast camera that can fit almost anywhere, can be operated remotely, is low cost but also provides higher image quality than an action camera? The answer is simple: the Blackmagic Design Micro Studio Camera 4K.